South Yuba Trail at North Bloomfield Road -

Hiking and swimming along the South Yuba Trail in Nevada County.

The South Yuba Trail beginning at Edwards Crossing outside of Nevada City is a popular hiking and swimming destination. To the west of the Edwards Crossing Bridge, built in 1903, is a short hike to the Spring Creek Water which is nice when the water is flowing. On the south side of the South Yuba River is a nice long trail that you can hike for hours on heading west. The trail head begins at the bottom of North Bloomfield Road where it crosses the South Yuba River, also known as Edwards Crossing on maps. (Picture gallery, map, and recordings at end of post).

South Yuba River Trail along steep canyon

While the river canyon is narrow and steep, the South Yuba River trail stays close to the water and has moderate elevation gains and descents. However, getting down to the river from the trail can mean negotiating a steep grade. On the June morning we hiked, which happened to be after a pleasant rainstorm the previous day, the trail was filled with a variety of wonderful woodland aromas. Usually these trails can be hot and dusty.

Several micro-climates on trail

In just a short one hour hike west you’ll travel through several different micro-climates. From near rainforest shady areas with lush green shrubs and plants to sun drench desert climate. Another unexpected experience was the variety of aromas encountered along the trail, which was enhanced by the previous day’s rainstorm and following day’s warm weather.

Top wooden planks on Edwards Crossing Bridge, originally constructed 1903.

Aromatic hiking experience

The heavy smell of creosote soaked timber jerks your nose and reminds you being along railroad tracks. The Edwards Crossing Bridge has a two layered wooden road bed. The first layer is square timbers that have been soaked in creosote to protect them from rotting. They are topped with sacrificial two by twelve planks. As the day warmed up we encountered the sweet pine and butterscotch aroma from the various conifer trees. On the shady parts of the trail you’ll smell earthy damp soil and leaf litter.

South Yuba River swimming

The water was nice and warm. It’s easy to slip into the water after a long hot hike and watch the trout swim around your legs. Underneath Edwards Crossing Bridge is a long deep pool perfect for swimming. Drive down to the Edwards Crossing early in the day as the road side parking spots fill up fast. North Bloomfield is narrow windy roads down to the bridge so don’t be in a hurry to get there.

Gold Panning and waterfalls

Gold panning is only allowed with the hand and pan method. The trail does cut across private property so watch for signs and make sure you are either on BLM or Tahoe National Forest land before heading down to the river to prospect. While we didn’t gold pan, I found natural treasure by stumbling across a swarm of lady bugs emerging from their nest near Spring Creek and I recorded a six inch long millipede crossing the trail. The short Spring Creek trail is on the north side of the river. There are more rocks and roots to climb over to get to the waterfall of Spring Creek. The rocks near the river have been polished smooth by the river and are exceptionally slippery even when completely dry.